Falling for Fall - Pumpkin Spice Latte at home!!!

I must be the last person on the planet to never have tried the Starbucks Pumpkin SPice Latte that all of my friends are so very excited about this time of year.... So after much thought I decided yesterday that I was going to try one! Only problem? The close Starbucks is about 20 minutes away and I had a little one ready for a nap. What to do but DIY one! A quick google search lead me to this super easy recipe here. Don't worry though - of course I made some changes to it!

And here is my version:

1 cup Milk
1 cup Almond Milk
3 tbsp Canned Pumpkin
3 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp vanilla
1/2 tsp cinnamon
Dash nutmeg
1 cup coffee
Whipped Cream

In a saucepan, whisk together milk, pumpkin, and sugar on medium heat. Stir until steaming. Remove from heat, stir in vanilla and spices. Whisk really well for about 1 minute. Pour into a large mug. Top with whipped cream and cinnamon.

I drank one yummy cup and popped the remaining 2 cups into the frig and warmed one up today and it was just as good!

And I used my leftover pumpkin to make these amazing pumpkin bars that are a fall staple around my house! I <3 PUMPKIN and long 3 day weekends!!!!

Parmesan Crusted Chicken.... My Way!

I pinned this super yummy looking parmesan crusted chicken recipe over the weekend and was so excited to try it out! But when it came time to cook dinner last night, I could not find the recipe! So I turned to my good friend google and ran across this one pictured below.

And in typical me style - I was missing half of the 4 needed ingredients... namely the parmesan and the bread crumbs! Never one to let little issues slow me down I moved forward with my own version!

Cheesy Ranch Crusted Chicken

1/2 cup Mayonnaise
1/4 cup Mexican Cheese
1 TBSP Ranch Seasoning
1/4 cup Ground Flax Seeds
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Mix together the mayo, cheese, and ranch seasoning in a bowl.
Place the chicken on a baking sheet and cover evenly with the ranch mixture.
Sprinkle the flax evenly on the top of the ranch mixture.
Bake for ~20 minutes. Finish with 2 minutes on broil.

Voila! The most tasty and juicy chicken I have had in ages!!!!

Loaded Baked Potato Dip... Yummy!!!!

It's summertime and what is more summer friendly then a dip for barbecues, pool parties, and outside gatherings. It's easy, can be prepared in advance, it's great for sharing, and it's down right yummy! But this dip really knocked my socks off!

I was immediately intrigued when I saw it here on Mix and Match Mama. I have never been led astray by her recipes and I was waiting for just the right occasion to this a try (in reality - you don't need an occasion... other than being hungry!)

Loaded Baked Potato Dip:

8 ounces sour cream

4 ounces cream cheese, at room temp

8 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, grated

8 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled

1/4 cup snipped chives

1 tablespoon powdered ranch dressing mix

1/4 teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce

1 bag of potato chips (I used a kettle chip!)

Combine sour cream, cream cheese and cheddar until thoroughly mixed.  Fold in bacon, chives, ranch dressing mix and Worcestershire Sauce.  Chill at least two hours before serving (the longer you chill, the better).

Serve with your favorite chips.

PS - I may or may not have eaten this as lunch and dinner....

Random Food Thoughts... Pumpkin Brownies, Milkshakes, and more!

I have a couple of random food related thoughts this lovely Monday morning...

1. My name is Nikki and I am a chocoholic! So whats a girl to do when she needs her chocolate but is trying to not eat horribly? I found the perfect solution! Almost Healthy, High Fiber Brownie cookies! You literally dump a box of brownie mix, half a can of canned pumpkin, and 2 tbsp applesauce into a bowl and mix! Cook on 350 for about 10 minutes (or eat them raw!) Yes - I know they are not healthy but with just pumpkin and applesauce I can use girl math to pretend! In the bottom pic, I stuffed them with vanilla frozen yogurt as a treat for Little Man and he LOVED them too :)

2. If you looking for the real deal summer treat... Look no further than Sonic's Summer of Shakes! These things are to die for! So far I have tried the Chocolate Covered Strawberry, Chocolate Cream Pie, and Oreo Cheesecake... and I can't wait to try more! What's even better is that after 8pm it's half off milkshakes!

Sonic Summer of Shakes

3. Okay, back to healthy eating.... My sister stumbled on these yummy kid friendly snacks. I feel so much better passing these out than the usual Goldfish. They are in the salad topping section at most grocery stores and they are really tasty! You must try them for yourself and your kids.

4. Another great product that is kid friendly. Most mornings I try to make homemade healthy pancakes but sometimes it doesn't happen. These sweet potato pancakes are high in protein, all natural, and they taste great! I can only find them at my local Fresh Market but have seem them at local Organic/ Health Food stores on occasion.

White Chicken Enchiladas and Almost {Healthy} Fried Ice Cream!!!

Happy Cinco de Mayo! This used to be a holiday when I enjoyed drinking margaritas and Corona's at our local Mexican restaurant with 300 of my closest friends.... but I totally lucked out this year and get to celebrate with my 3 favorite people in the world :)

What a better meal than these yummy Chicken Enchiladas! I wish that I had a source, but this recipe was passed to me via a photocopied recipe at a close friend's wedding week festivities. It was such a hit that the hubs (my fiance at the time) insisted I find this recipe. Luckily, the hostess had a copy she gladly passed on. Not only is it a knock out meal, it can be prepared ahead of time which is a must for me when entertaining.... or for dinner's in general with 2 young kids! I have switched it up by going veggie and using mushrooms instead of chicken or doing black beans instead of pinto. You really can't go wrong!

Chicken Enchiladas:
16 6 inch tortillas
1/2 cup chopped onion
4 cloves garlic, minced
4 tbsp butter
6 tbsp flour
1 16 ounce carton low fat sour cream
3 cups chicken broth
1 4 oz can diced green chili peppers
1 tsp chili powder
2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
1 cup corn
1 cup pinto beans
4 cups chopped cooked chicken (I use 2 organic cans of chicken, drained)

Wrap tortillas in foil. Heat in a 350 degree oven for 10 minutes until soft (I skip this step if in a crunch!)
In a sauce pan - cook onion and garlic in butter till tender.
Stir flour into sour cream and add to onion mixture. Stir in broth, chili powder, & chili peppers.
Cook until thickened and bubbling. Remove from heat and stir in 3/4 cup of cheese. Set aside.
In a bowl, stir 1 cup of sauce into chicken. Add corn, pinto beans, and 1/2 cup of cheese. Mix well.

Spoon chicken mixture into tortilla and roll. Place seam side down in a lightly greased baking dish. Once all tortillas have been rolled and placed in dish, top with remaining sauce. Bake covered at 350  degrees for 30 minutes. Add remaining cheese to top and cook an additional 5 minutes.

Almost {Healthy} Fried Ice Cream:
1 pint vanilla bean ice cream
1 cups of cinnamon cereal (I used a mix on Fiber One Caramel Delight and Raisin Bran. I just grabbed the last bit of each that we had left, threw it in a plastic bag, & crushed it with a rolling pin)

Using an ice cream scoop, make ice cream balls.
Dip balls in crushed cereal. Mix around till each ball os coated.
Place balls back into freezer in a freezer safe container for approx 1 hour.
Remove when ready to serve. Top with honey, chocolate sauce, whipped cream.... anything!!!!

Healthy Pancakes

I love breakfast! Well, really I love every meal but I especially love breakfast! We are early risers here so it works great to spend some time cooking in the kitchen with the kids before the day gets too crazy. I also like knowing that the kids are getting some fruits, fiber, and protein without even realizing it. I am so sneaky!

1 cup Old Fashioned Oats
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup greek yogurt
1/2 cup flour
1 1/4 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 Tbsp Applesauce
1 Tbsp Flax seed
2 Tbsp Water
1 Ripe Banana (mashed)

1. Place the oats, milk, yogurt, and banana into a blender or food processor. Blend about 1 minute (you can also let these ingredients soak together in a bowl for 20 minutes... but I don't have that kind of time with 2 hungry kids!)

2. Add the oat mixture to the remaining ingredients in a mixing bowl. Mix until combined. Little Man is OBSESSED with adding food color to everything... so we also add in a few drops of food color at this point.

3. Cook on a griddle over medium high heat. Flip when bubbles appear on the top of the pancake.

4. Top with fruit, syrup, honey.... anything!!!

Here is the original Recipe that I made some changes to! It's a great start to the day and they can even be refrigerated and reheated the next day for a quick breakfast of mid day snack!

Apple Orange Cranberry Oatmeal Muffins

With all of this amazing springtime weather, I was instantly pulled to make some yummy and healthy breakfast muffins for the kids. Something about this warm weather makes me think of apples, oranges, and fresh fruit. So why not throw a bunch of fruits into a muffin?

I used this recipe as a base and made some changes.... These were so good that there is no pretty shot at the end because we ate me ALL before I could take one!

• 1-1/2 cups quick-cooking oats
• 1-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup unsweetened applesauce
• Zest of one orange
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• 1 Granny smith apple (peeled and diced)
• 1/2 cup fat-free milk
• 2 flax eggs (2tbsp flax seed + 4tbsp water)
• 1/4 cup quick-cooking oats
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon butter, melted

Directions

• In a large bowl, combine the first seven ingredients. In another bowl, combine the applesauce, orange zest, apple, cranberries, milk, and flax egg. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Fill muffin cups coated with cooking spray three-fourths full.
• Combine topping ingredients ( last 4 on the above list); sprinkle over batter. Bake at 400° for 16-18 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack. Yield: 10 muffins.

Chicken & Bean Enchilada Casserole

 I love Mexican food! I could eat it 5 nights a week! I often wonder if that's because I never even tried it until college or if it's because of my love for any meal that I can eat with avocado? Either way, this meal is stupid easy and a real crowd pleaser! I have made it several different ways and no matter what you choose to throw in, it always turns out great.

Ingredients:
3 cups of shredded chicken (I chose 2 cans of organic chicken breast)
1 can of pinto beans (rinsed and drained) - could sub with black beans, refried beans..... etc
1 can of corn
8 flour tortillas
3 cups of medium salsa (I had no salsa so I made my own! See below!)
3 cups of mexican cheese
1 cup of crushed tortilla chips

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a large bowl combine the chicken, beans, salsa, and corn.
3. Add a third of the chicken mixture to the bottom of your casserole dish and top with a quarter of the cheese. Cover with a layer of the tortillas.
4. Continue to layer on the chicken, cheese, and tortillas until you have 3 layers.
5. Top with your crumbled tortillas chips and sprinkling of cheese.
6. Bake for 20 minutes or until the cheese is bubbling.

Fia's Pink & Green Circus Themed 1st Birthday

I am a lover of party planning and as Fia's first birthday approached I started on the planning...  with Little Mans help! Being that her birthday fell on Easter weekend and our families are hours away,it was going to be just the four us. I wanted to keep everything really simple (read inexpensive!) but still have a really fun party to celebrate her big 1st birthday!

I had no idea on a theme or details, so I set out with kids in tow to Hobby Lobby hoping for some inspiration. Little Man stumbled upon the most adorable vintage circus fabric and it was all over! We chose 2 patterns of scrap book paper to make a pendant banner, pink striped paper straws, tulle and ribbon for a tutu, and #1 napkins, candle, and cupcake toppers (plus one yard of the circus fabric) for less than $30. 

I made Fia a ONE onesie using the circus fabric and pink, green, and white tutu. I was lazy and hand drew, cut, and hot glued the letters on to a pink onesie. I then made her a tricolor tutu very similar to her Parrot Halloween costume. I wanted something a little more so I decided to make her a headband. I wanted to use the circus fabric so I decided to make a fabric flower. I cut 4 four inch circles from the fabric and stitched them together pleating them as I went until it resembled a flower. Then I added it on to a solid white headband.

As for the food it was 100% kiddie foods and desserts! Grilled cheese sandwiches cut using elephant sandwich cutters that we bought at our Walmart ages ago. Strawberries and animal crackers in my well used gray ceramic egg crates served as snacks. And for the real fun.... Desserts! I used the paper straws to hold sprinkle dipped marshmallows in metal buckets. I used the Confetti cake mix to make both cupcakes and a square smash cake. I thought about store bought frosting but decided to make my own since it would be her first taste of anything really sweet. I used this recipe and added in about 4 mashed up strawberries to make it pink. Let me say, I might never buy frosting again this was so good! I frosted the smash cake and then used animal crackers around the edges to decorate it. Super cute and easy!

I cut out triangles from the scrap book paper, added foam sticky letters to them, and strung them together. The remaining fabric was used as a table runner on my dresser turned buffet which worked perfectly with the green glass lamps! Her smash cake on a glass cake plate finished it off!

I adore how it all turned out and think she had a wonderful first birthday!!!

Linking up at Serenity Now.

Marshmallow Pebbles Treats

Even though Easter is now past (although my candy hangover is not!) I had to share this fun recipe that could be perfect for spring get-togethers, birthday parties, whatever! I was looking for an easy and fun recipe to prepare for our Easter dinner at a friend's house. I was planning to do the pretty basic Rice Crispy treats cut out in cute shapes but when I saw this box on the cereal aisle, I knew that this would be even better!

I used the Fruity Pebbles Recipe just substituted the different cereal. And they are just as easy as Rice Crispy treats but so much yummier!

1. Melt about 4 TBSP Butter
2. Add in a full bag of Marshmallows (I used a 10oz bag of the regular sized ones) and stir until melted
3. Dump in the whole box of cereal (minus that small bowl I ate late last night when I craving sweets!)
4. Stir to coat the cereal with the butter marshmallow mixture
5. Using a buttered piece of wax paper, press the mixture into a greased pan
6. Let cool completely.
7. Cut into squares or use cookie cutters and cut into shapes! If using cookie cutters, you can smash the leftover pieces back together so you use all of it!

Meatloaf is great... Coach's Stack is out of this world!

One of the most loved recipes in our house is my Chicken & Bacon Meatloaf. I often mix it up by using ground turkey and adding various veggies that you can never even notice. The hubby hates broccoli and I got an entire cup into it the most recent time I made them.... he had no idea! Little Man is a huge fan too and I have no doubt that Fia will love it as well.

So when I saw this amazing recipe at Mix and Match Mama for the Coach's Stack, I knew that it would be a huge hit for our anniversary dinner! I had never even heard of a coach's stack before but I sure am glad that I gave it a try.

I opted for Jiffy cornbread as the base, followed by boxed Mashed Potatoes, topped with my bacon wrapped meat balls and french fried onions on top. My presentation wasn't quite as nice as Shay's but it was 8pm on a school night and we were starving!

The verdict? Amazing! This went over even better than the original meat loaf and both the hubs and I went back for a second stack!

Marinated Flank Steak & Scalloped Potatoes

We had a pretty quiet Valentine's Day this year (with no grandparents to watch the kiddos while we have a night out). So we decided to have a nice dinner at home once the kids went to sleep. It was a great night with yummy food and even yummier dessert! The hubby surprised me with Twist cupcakes and I surprised him with chocolate covered strawberries. I would say that was a major win-win!

I prepared a favorite meal that we haven't had in quite a while. It's a great meal for dinner parties because 98% of it is prepared in advance. Oh yeah... and it's amazing! So here is the scoop for our Marinated Flank Steak and Scalloped Potatoes.

Marinated Flank Steak Ingredients:

2 TBSP Garlic Powder

1 TSP Paprika

1 TSP Cumin

1 TSP Oregano

1 TBSP Montreal Steak Seasoning

2 splashes Hot Sauce

2 TBSP Worcestershire sauce

2 TBSP Red Wine Vinegar

1 TBSP Soy Sauce

1/2 cup Olive Oil

2LB Flank or Skirt Steak

Mix all ingredients into a large plastic bag.

Place Flank Steak into bag.

Shake well to coat.

Allow to marinate at least 30 minutes, shaking occasionally to re-coat.

Heat grill pan or grill to high heat.

Grill steak about 5-7 minutes per side.

Remove steak from grill and place on a plate. Allow to sit a few minutes prior to cutting.

Waiting to get on the grill! 

Scalloped Potatoes Ingredients:

2 cans Sliced White Potatoes, drained

4 TBSP Butter

3 TBSP Flour

1 1/2 cups milk

1/8 TSP Cayenne Pepper

1 TSP Paprika

1 1/2 cups Cheddar Cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat and blend in flour once melted.

Add the milk and stir with a whisk. Add seasonings and whisk till blended.

Cook sauce on low until smooth stirring as it cooks.

Remove pan from heat and add 1 cup of cheese.

Pour potatoes into lightly greased casserole dish ( you want mostly one layer of potatoes)

Pour cheese sauce over potatoes. Sprinkle with remaining cheese.

Bake uncovered for one hour.

Potatoes smothered and covered and heading into the oven!

Potatoes are cooked and it's almost time to eat! 

And here is the finished product.... It's not a "pretty" shot because it was not on our plates for very long! Seriously, my man is a real meat and potato guy and I was not about to get in the way of his dinner. But if you are looking for a no fail impress meal this is it! We have also used this marinade on other cuts of cheaper meat. It knocks those out of the park too since the vinegar acts a tenderizer and the flavor combo is out of this world!

Almost Healthy Sugar Cookies

Being that it's Valentine's week, I could not resist another yummy Vday treat post. And it is a seasonal favorite around our house... meaning that we make these for every season! Halloween, Christmas, Thanksgiving, Easter.... no joke Little Man adores these cookies! The best news? In the grand scheme of cookies, these are not horrible for you (but the taste will never give you away!)

Cookies:

1 1/4 cup Earth Balance Buttery Spread

1 cup sugar

1 TBSP Flax seeds

3 TBSP warm water

2 TSP Vanilla

4 cups flour

1 TSP Baking Powder

Frosting:

2 cups powdered sugar

1 TBSP Earth Balance Buttery Spread

1 TBSP Soy or Almond Milk

1/2 TSP Vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 F

Mix flax seed and water together to make flax egg.  Let sit 3-5 minutes.

Cream together butter and sugar using electric mixer. Mix in flax egg and vanilla.

Add in flour and baking powder a cup at a time. 

You will need to hand hand mix the last cup!

When fully mixed, cover and refrigerate for at least an hour.

Once chilled, roll the dough onto floured surface and cut out shapes. 

Bake on lightly greased cookie sheet for 8-10 minutes. (cookies expand so leave some space!)

Allow to cool completely prior to frosting.

Mix together powdered sugar and Earth Balance spread. 

Add in vanilla, then milk.

Stir until there are no lumps. 

For best results, use gel food coloring!

Paint your cookies and garnish with chocolate chips, sprinkles, red hots..... whatever works!

And since no real eggs are used in this recipe - the kids (and ME!) love to taste the dough!

Now, gather your ingredients and start baking!

Little Man decorating Mickey Mouse cookies

His skills have improved with lots of practice painting cookies!

Broken Heart Jello Cookies

I spent some great time with Little Man working on a Valentine's Day treat and craft for the Dog Days of Winter Love It Challenge. Going along with my earlier post about foods that remind me of my childhood, I decided to make Jello cookies. These were often made using Lime and Strawberry Jello around Christmas time and I loved them! This is the Original Recipe that I made some changes to.

Jello Cookies

1 3 oz box of Strawberry Jello

1/4 cup butter

1/4 cup applesauce

1/2 cup sugar

1 tsp Vanilla

2 1/2 cups flour

2 eggs (I used flax eggs - so 2 tbsp flax seed and 6 tbsp water)

1 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Cream the butter, applesauce, sugar, and Jello. Add the eggs and vanilla on medium speed. Sift remaining dry ingredients and add a little at a time till fully mixed. Roll dough into 1 inch balls and place on cookie sheet. Fill a shallow plate with sugar. Dip a glass into a bit of water, then into the sugar plate. Press the dough down to 3/8 inch thickness. You can add chunkier granulated sugar also. Bake 6-8 minutes.

the ingredients...

Little Man trying the batter! This is the reason I use flax instead of eggs! 

And yes - he refuses to let the Christmas jammies be taken out of the rotation!

The mixed Jello cookie dough

We opted to make bigger cookies, so these are 2 inch balls

Flattened down dough balls

We then used a heart shaped cookie cutter.... and then we ate the extra dough we trimmed off!

While the cookies baked, we got to work on the canister for the cookies. I was planning to use an empty Oatmeal canister but this little baby one seemed perfect with the red lid and all! I grabbed a polka dot gift bag and we got to work recovering it. We trimmed the paper to size and attached it using double sided tape. Then we played around with some felt to decorate it up a bit more! You can just barely see it but I took the handles from the gift bag and hot glued them around the middle of the canister to hold the heart shaped tag.

Perfect little canister! Love that I was able to reuse it!

Cutting the paper to size

Since our cookies were so big, we wanted to cut them in half but this seemed much more appropriate!

Our finished canister! Thought the saying was cute.... I love you without a dot (doubt!)

Filled with cookies and ready to surprise Daddy!

Impossible Cheeseburger Pie

There are some meals that totally remind me of a being a kid. I was a pretty picky eater (tomatoes, yogurt, ranch dressing, ketchup, chinese food, tacos, guacamole..... some of my now favorite foods that I never ate until college and even after!) But this savory meal was a staple at our house growing up and I was so excited to make it and see if Little Man loved it as much as I did!

In typical fashion, I changed healthied it up a bit but here is the original Betty Crocker Recipe.

1/2 LB Ground Turkey Breast
1 large onion chopped
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tbsp Olive Oil
1 tbsp Worchestire sauce
1 cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese
1/2 cup Original Bisquick Mix
1 cup Milk
2 eggs

Heat oven to 400 degrees F
Lightly grease 9 inch pie pan
Toss the olive oil and garlic powder into a skillet
Add the ground turkey & onion
Saute for about 5 minutes
Add the worchestire sauce and saute an additional 5 minutes making sure to break up the ground turkey
Drain the meat and then pour the meat into the pie pan
In a small bowl whisk Bisquick, milk, and eggs until well blended
Pour over the meat in pie pan
Bake about 25 minutes
Add the cheese to the top and place back in the oven with heat turned off until cheese melts

And not only did Little Man LOVE this meal, so did my hubby! My mom used to add fresh sliced tomatoes before adding the shredded cheese and that is next on my list for this meal!